Letteb-box



l. W. PREETORIUS.

LETTER BOX.

APPLlCATlON FILED NOV. 26, 1919.

1,369,125, Patented Feb. 22, 1921.

Y SHEETS- SHEET I l. w. PREETO RIUS.

LETTER BOX.

APPLICATION HLED NOV. 26, 1919.

1,369,125. Patented Feb. 22, 1921.

2 SHEET$HEET 2- Suwwtom Irwin, W'- Preeiam'ms UNITED STATES IRWIN W. PBEETORIUS, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

LETTER-BOX.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 22, 1921.

Application filed November 26, 1919. Serial No. 840,714.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, IRWIN W. PRnn'roRIUs, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Letter-Boxes, of which the following is a specification.

This invention seeks to provide letter boxes for apartment houses and ofiice buildings, or other structures in which the mail for a number of tenants is delivered at a station on the ground floor of the building, and in which the presence of mail will not be indicated to outsiders so that robbing of the boxes will not be an easy matter. A. specific object of the invention is to provide a mechanism which will permit the letter carrier to simultaneously open all the letter boxes and close the several boxes after depositing mail therein. A further object of the invention is to provide letter boxes by which the several tenants may individually withdraw mail from the boxes assigned to them without disturbing any of the other boxes, and the invention also seeks to attain the stated objects by mechanism which will be simple and compact and not apt to get out of order.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a front elevation of a row of boxes provided with my improvements;

Fig. 2 is a rear elevation with parts broken away and in section;

Fig. 3 is a transverse section on the line 33 of Fig. 2.

In carrying out the invention, I employ 21. facing plate 1 which may be ornamented in any desired manner and will be free of openings except those provided for the doors to the several letter boxes. The openings will preferably be rectangular and a main door 2 will be fitted in each opening so as to fit closely therein but capable of swinging therefrom and the door may be mounted to swing in a horizontal plane or in a vertical plane as may be preferred, the present drawings showing the door connected at its lower end by hinges 3 to the face plate so that it will swing in a vertical plane. Above each door will be provided a name plate, or bracket 4 adapted to hold a name plate, so that the several boxes may be properly designated to identify the tenants to which they are assigned. Each door 2 is preferably in the form of an inverted U- shaped bar or frame and within the said door a smaller auxiliar door 5 fits closely but 15 connected to the ace plate by a hinge 6 so as to swing concentrically with the larger door as will be readily understood. The several doors 2 are provided on their inner sides with hasps or keepers 7 which are engaged by bolts 8 on the smaller door so that when the box is locked the two doors will swing together. The bolt 8 will conveniently be mounted in a lock casing 9 on the inner side of the smaller door and will be controlled by a lock 10, preferably of the tumbler type, and the key to which will be furnished the tenant to whom the box is assigned.

. Each larger door 2 will be provided on its inner side at its upper end with a keeper 11 to be engaged by a bolt 12 mounted on the face plate 1 immediately above the door and housed within a casing 13 secured to the said face plate. The bolt will be normally projected into engagement with the keeper by a spring 14 housed within the casing and playing between the upper closed end of the same and the upper end of the bolt, as shown in Fig. 2. The casing is provided with a slot 15 through which the stem of a. knob 16 carried by the bolt passes to aid in guiding the bolt in its movements and to facilitate its release in the manner to be described. Fulcrumed upon the inner side of the face plate, adjacent each lock casing 13, is an angle lever 17 or 18 which has one arm 19 extending under the stem of the knob 16 and suitably recessed to firmly engage said stem. The other arm of the lever extends upwardly and is pivotally connected to a rod 20 which extends the full length of the row of boxes so that all the angle levers will be simultaneously operated. The lever 18 at one end of the row of boxes is provided with a third arm 21 which extends therefrom in alinement with the arm 19 and projects over a lock 22 which will preferably be of the tumbler type employing a rotatable barrel 23. On the inner end of the barrel 23, I secure a crank arm 24, the end of which is connected by a link 25 with the free end of the lever arm 21.

Partitions 26 will be provided at the inner side of the face plate 1 So as to separate the several letter boxes and upon the inner face of the plate 1 adjacent each partitionand below the door opening is secured a leaf spring or presser 27 which has its free end what has been said. upon reference to Fig. 1, when the doors bearing upon the door 2 and tending to throw the door downward. extends through the entire row of boxes adjacent the lower edges of the several doors and upon each door is secured a hook or bracket 29 which passes below the said stop rod and is adapted, when the door is swung to open position, to engage against the said rod so as to prevent excessive dropping of the door and support it in position to be easily 'rasped by the operator to be returned to closed-and locked position.

Below each door and on the outer face of the face plate 1, I provide a clip 30 in which newspapers or similar pieces of mail may be placed and a bell 31 and a speaking tube 32 may be provided as is now the general custom.

It is thought the uses and advantages of the device will be readily understood from As will be observed are raised and the letter boxes closed there are no openings through which the mail may be seen and, therefore, malicious persons will notbe enabled to determine the presence of mail by a casual inspection. More over, the usual slot provided for the insertion of mail is omitted and the withdrawal of mail through said slot by the use of a wire or other tool is prevented. The letter carrier will be provided with a master key controlling the lock 22 and by inserting said key and rotating the barrel 23 he will cause the crank 22 to exert a pull upon the link 25 which will be transmitted through the arm 21 to the lovers 17 and 18 so that the said lovers will be rocked about their tulcrums and the bolts 12 lifted against the tension of the several springs 14 and withdrawn from the keepers 11. Immediately upon the release of the bolts from the keepers, the

presser springs 27 will push the main doors 2, which for convenience may be denotedas carrier doors, to the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 3 so that the mail may be then inserted over the opened door and through the door opening into the proper box. The tenants door 5 will remain locked to the carriers door and will swing outwardly with it as will be readily understood.

After the mail has been deposited, the carriers doors are pushed back into closed po-' sition and will be automatically retained by the bolts 12, the carrier then withdrawing his key from the lock 22 and proceeding on his way. A. tenant, desiring to withdraw his mail, will insert a key furnished him and controlling the lock 10 of the door to his box and will manipulate the look so as to withdraw the bolt 8 from the keeper 7 A stop rod 28 whereupon the door 5 may be pulled open and the mail withdrawn. Upon returning the door to closed position the bolt 8 will automatically reengage the keeper 7 and the door will then remain closed until again opened by the tenant or the letter carrier.

t will be readily noted that my device is exceedingly simple in the construction and arrangement of its parts and will effectually guard the mail against withdrawal by unauthorized persons. 7 Moreover, the in sertion of the mail will be facilitated inasmuch as a larger opening than heretofore will be provided and a more bulky volume of mail may be deposited at one time.

Having thus described the invention, what;

in closed posi ion, said means being operable to permit simultaneous opening of all the doors and to permit independent open ing of the several tenants doors.

2. The combination with a plurality of compartments each having a main door,

locking means common to all the main doors and controlling all of said main doors, and a supplemental door in each main door and controlled by an individual locking means.

3. The combination with a letter box having a door opening, or a carriers door and a tenants door mounted within said door opening for concentric movement, means for locking both doors in closed position,

and means independent of the first mentioned locking means for locking the tenants' door in closed position and permitting opening thereof without disturbing the carriers door. i 7

4. The combination with a plurality of compartments each having a carriers door and a tenants door mounted for concentric movement, locking means common to all of the carriers doors and controlling all of said carriers doors, locking means for each tenants door independent of the locking means tor thecarriers doors,-'means for projecting both doors ot'ieach compartment to open position when the carrier locking means has been released, a stop rod arranged adjacent the doors, and coacting stop members carried by certain of the doors and adapted to engage said stop rod when the doors are opened. f

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

.lR-VVIN W. PREETORIUS. [Ls] 

